House Republicans vote to deport DREAMers

The U.S. House of Representatives, breaking along party lines, on Thursday voted to cut off money to an Obama administration program that lets young, undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children remain in the U.S. if they are in school or in the military.

Despite GOP claims that the party is courting Hispanic voters, 221 Republican House members — four from Washington — voted in favor of an amendment sponsored by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, the most strident anti-immigrant voice in Congress’ lower chamber.

Republican Rep. Dave Reichert: At times moderate, he voted for House amendment that would put young emigres back in line for deportation.

The amendment passed on a 224-201 vote. It would reverse an administration policy in which immigration enforcement and deportation efforts are centered on undocumented residents who have committed a crime or been engaged in the dealing of illegal drugs.

The so-called DREAMers, many in school, would be thrust back in line for deportation.

“Whatever people think of the impending immigration policy here in the United States, we cannot allow the executive branch to usurp the legislative authority of the U.S. Congress,” King argued in floor debate.

King was talking process but is known for his incendiary words. He once likened the selection of visa recipients allowed to enter the United States with picking “a good bird dog” and avoiding “one sleeping in the corner.” He has railed against multiculturalism in America.

Democratic House members from this state were vocal in opposition to King’s amendment.

“I have spoken to a lot of DREAMers in northwest Washington who only want to stay here and continue to contribute to the country they know as home,” said Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash. “These young people who were brought to this country as children, graduated from our schools and served in the military now want to continue realizing the American Dream. They are exactly the kind of immigrants who made this country great.”

Rep. Rick Larsen: Supports letting young, undocumented emibrees “stay here and contribute to the country they know as home.”

Only six House Republicans voted against the King amendment. Three of the chamber’s 201 Democrats supported it.

The unanimous anti-DREAMer vote by Washington’s Republican House members comes as something of a surprise. Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Wash., is a moderate on some issues. Reichert’s 8th District was shifted in the 2012 redistricting and now crosses the Cascades to include Wenatchee and Kittitas counties — home to a substantial portion of Washington’s Hispanic population.

Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., is an ultraconservative, but his district includes much of the Yakima Valley, home to Latino emigres since the 1940s. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash., has been promoted by Republican strategists for her own Hispanic heritage.

President Obama won re-election in 2012, in large part, by getting support of 71 percent of the Hispanic vote. The White House was quick to say Thursday that the King amendment was going nowhere. “It’s wrong, it’s not who we are and it will not become law,” said a statement.

The cause of DREAMers has suffered setbacks in both Washingtons.

The state House of Representatives in Olympia passed a Washington DREAM Act earlier this year. It would make college-bound youths — undocumented young people who have lived most of their lives here — eligible for state financial aid. The legislation has been blocked in the Senate Higher Education Committee by its chair, State Sen. Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor.

The Washington DREAM Act has the votes to pass in the Senate if it reaches the floor. But Bailey will not allow a vote in her committee. Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom, D-Medina — a stated supporter of the bill, and a Higher Education panel member — has taken no action to move the legislation.